Monday, October 29, 2012

First Asean human rights declaration draft criticised

Civil
society groups in Asean countries have expressed disappointment over
the content and process of the first-ever Asean human rights
declaration, which aims to ensure human rights protection for 600
million people in the region.

Yuyun Wahyuningrum, senior advisor on
Asean and Human Rights at the watchdog Human Rights Working Groups,
which represents more than 50 human rights groups in Indonesia, said
that the draft did not reflect the universal values that Asean pledged
to uphold.

"We are disappointed over the content
and drafting process, which lacks transparency. Up to now, the document
has not been shared with the public. This is not best practice,"
Wahyuningrum told The Jakarta Post.Asean established its human rights body,
the Asean Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (Aichr) in 2009,
with one of its key mandates to prepare a draft of the Asean
Declaration of Human Rights.

The declaration, expected to be adopted
during the Asean Summit from November 18 to 20, will be a momentous
step in the association's 45-year-old history.

Civil society groups are especially
concerned about the many terms and articles, like "public morality" and
"national and regional particularity", in articles six, seven and eight
of the general principles.

Wahyuningrum said that the three
detrimental articles undermined the declaration, making it a
watered-down version of universal values. A number of articles in the
draft suggested the declaration had become too much about negotiating
the national interests of various Asean states rather than about
improving human rights, she added.

Civil society groups gathered in Phnom
Penh last week argued that time was running out to rid the proposed
draft of clauses that would restrict peoples' rights rather than
protecting and enhancing them.

Nay Vanda, deputy head of the monitoring
section of rights group Adhoc in Cambodia, said civil society groups
needed more opportunities to consult with leaders on the wording of the
declaration. "The [declaration] can be a success for the government […]
if it is equal or higher than [the 1948 Universal Declaration on Human
Rights]. If it is lower, it can ruin the reputation of Cambodia."

The drafting process has also been
criticised for a lack of transparency. "From the beginning, the draft
has not been shared. So, it is difficult for us to make a comment and
discuss it with the UN. How can we comment if we don't have the draft?"
Wahyuningrum complained.

The only glimpse the public and civil society groups have had of the proposed declaration was by way of a leaked document.

International relations expert Dwi
Ardhanariswari Sundrijo of University of Indonesia argued that Asean
had a true intention to engage people in regionalism, but this applied
mostly to social cultural aspects. For issues related to state
sovereignty, security, stability and other traditional issues, Asean
governments were reluctant to engage civil society widely.

"Asean is not ready yet. It could be understood since democracy has not well established throughout Asean member states."

Asean member-states have been divided in wording the draft.Cambodia wanted to ensure that the draft
was approved during the summit. As chair of Asean this year, Cambodia
does not want a second failure. Cancelling the adoption would mean a
second failure for Phnom Penh after the failure to issue a joint
communique at the Asean Ministerial Meeting in July.

Despite the draft being undoubtedly
substandard, Wahyuningrum said time was running out to delay the
adoption. She suggested that Asean establish a team of experts to give
interpretations article by article and to explain some legal term.